If you are still not sure of what Wiki is, check Wikipedia, or PmWiki’s FAQ.

The idea behind is Wiki is what Qingsi suggested: to supply and choose a better translation to the misspelled words or grammer mistakes.

The Wiki site also serves as a place for you to report other significant typos in this city. I am not very sure what we can do with the result yet, but I guess the media or the government will notice it one day and push for the correction.

MetroTypos is only one page specially created for Typos in Metro. You can feel free to create new pages as easy as create write an WikiWord and you can edit it by following the link.

Before you get started, do follow all the rules of the Wiki world. Thanks.

But as a few comments pointed out, whether this can have any impact is unpredictable at this stage. however i would say let’s give it a try first. You didn’t know your blog could be this wonderful the day you created it. Let’s see how many people will be interested and what kind of initiatives we can take beside correcting the Xujiahui mistake. I suggested a change on ShanghaiWiki.MetroTypos and created a new page called ShanghaiWiki.MetroStationNames for a complete list of all station names for existing lines. Just to test how far this idea can go.

Stephen, Shanghai government is one of the most efficient one in China I think. I clearly see the that they are opening up by seeking out help from experts in each area to help. Expo 2010 is an example, where hundreds of positions are open for world wide candidates. I don’t think anyone will “seek” out help before they get aware of the problem. What we are doing is to PRESENT the problem and OFFER suggestions, and GO with the deliverables and PUSH for adoption. I will cover what I have done yesterday in today’s blog entry soon.

Qingsi, you gave a great idea to me again. I had a My City, My Bus Project idea before (see http://home.wangjianshuo.com/archives/20040107_my_city_my_bus_stop_project.htm ) but it paused for a while due to technical difficulties. Now my Wiki is back and I will load the data soon. As how Wiki works, you owns the Wiki site as much as I own, and you can create those pages by yourself if you have the idea. I fully support it. It is great.

Hi Jianshuo, i just read this article from the English newspaper in SG. Thought I’d share it with the rest here at your site.

actually i have another interesting article abt China which i’d like to share (perhaps i should start my own blog BUT that wld probably take me forever to create AND maintain! haha). should i email it to you instead??

to JL: i will try translating Wendy’s blog (found it!) during the weekend if time allows :)

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Straits Times ~ Oct 21, 2004

English signs go up in Guangzhou

TOILET and police are in. Cesuo and jingcha are out.

English is displacing hanyu pinyin on public signs in Guangzhou, Guangdong’s provincial capital.

According to the local official committee that advises on the city’s language policy, the Guangzhou government has asked several of its departments and organisations to use English words or names for local venues.

It is good to see you have pushed ahead to rectify the typo in the Metro, when you finished with that perhaps you should include the public sign displays at tourist area, there may not be any typos in it, but I am sure someone can made it more concise and more understandable.

Shanghai. (Interfax-China) – The Shanghai Municipal Government has established the Shanghai Public English Translation Expert Committee to draft special regulations for Chinese-English translation used in public venues around the city, including restaurants, shopping centers, subway stations, and government buildings.

“The committee will consist of 26 experts in English language, Chinese language, Chinese-English translation, law, and sociology, among others,” Chen Zhenming, Director of the Shanghai Civilization Office and the Shanghai Language Committee, said during a press conference Interfax attended in Shanghai. “Among the committee members, 4 will be foreign professors or senior management officers from foreign companies.”

Meanwhile, Shanghai officials have already issued a new general regulation for Chinese-English translations, which stipulates that all proper Chinese nouns should be translated into English in their Pinyin form, while common nouns should be translated directly using the corresponding English word. Pinyin is the roman letter based phonetic alphabet of the Chinese language.

The new regulations for Chinese-English translation are being drafted in an effort to clear up various inconsistencies between different translation services in Shanghai. One example cited by officials was the various translations for one of the city’s busiest thoroughfares, “Shaan Xi Nan Lu.” This street name had been translated into South Shaanxi Rd, Shaanxi Rd South, Shaanxi South Rd, Shaanxi Nan Lu, and Shanxi Rd South, which has in turn led to inconvenience and confusion.

“The English language is playing a more and more important role in daily life as Shanghai opens up to the world,” Qu Jun, Vice Director of the Shanghai Language Committee, told Interfax after the press conference. “There are a number of new English publications in Shanghai now, especially as we are preparing to host the 2010 World Expo, but in addition, Shanghai is now also home to more and more foreigners. Good Chinese and English communications will make Shanghai a much better place for all of its residents.”